Neurochemistry of meditation.

[Moog]

The prefrontal cortex is particularly well developed in meditators... it is the region of the brain that allows us to rise above urges like sex, things like violence etc. There was a psychiatrist who was telling me that there was evidence that meditators increase connections in the frontal cortex, but I can't find that study anywhere

No wonder lately after I meditate I can feel like my brain is rushing with blood. And it's pumping hard.

Hmm, could this account for this?

[Assaji]

The prefrontal cortex is particularly well developed in meditators... it is the region of the brain that allows us to rise above urges like sex, things like violence etc. There was a psychiatrist who was telling me that there was evidence that meditators increase connections in the frontal cortex, but I can't find that study anywhere.

See:
http://dhamma.ru/forum/index.php?topic= ... 21#msg5621" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Nibbida]

Here is one of the most comprehensive reviews, which is very technical if you're not a specialist:

http://www.wisebrain.org/papers/MedStat ... maging.pdf

In terms of electrical activity (EEG):
1. Increased alpha, more towards the frontal lobes
2. Increased theta, especially in frontal midline areas
3. More synchrony in the alpha and theta ranges, meaning various areas of the brain fire electrical signals in sync with each other
4. Increased gamma, probably corresponding to feelings of joy (piti)

What's interesting is elevated alpha and theta would be considered abnormal and pathological in most people. They usually happen when there's a mental or neurological illness. However, certain kinds of alpha and theta are are related to awareness and concentration, and this is what meditation seems to strengthen (i.e. not all alpha and theta waves are created equal.)

Look at this picture:

ScreenHunter_01 Jan. 11 17.46.jpg

1. Long term mediators (LTM) had more frontal theta and alpha compared to short term meditators
2. The amount of frontal theta correlated with greater bliss and less thoughts popping up.


Anatomically:
1. Thicker prefrontal cortex (greater use of any brain area tends to thicken it)
2. Lack of normal age-related atrophy in elderly meditators (brain stayed thicker)
3. Some other brain areas (this area is exploding with new studies)

[Kim OHara]

At the opposite techniciality-extreme from Nibbida's recommendation is an article in the most recent New Scientist. It gives an overview, mentioning a lot of different research groups, and basically says, 'Yes, meditation works and can make your life better,' which is at least a better conclusion than the alternative, 'No, it's all hokum,' that we used to see.

Kim

[Nibbida]

Hee hee. Well, he did ask what was happening in the brain...

It is the hope of some people, including the Dalai Lama, that understanding the neurobiology of meditation and enlightenment will help us find ways to facilitate the process. Of course it wouldn't do the work for a person, but it might be like working out in a gym in order to facilitate one's tennis game. You still need to practice tennis.

In this video Shinzen Young contemplates how churning out millions of stream-enterers or even Arahants could affect the planet:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hBDqTY1W8Dk

What would such a world look like?

[PeterB]

Thats a fantasy ...because it suggests that dhyana can be seperated from sila.

I am involved in an on going programme that seeks to match mapped brain activity with Cognitive Behavioural work. and teaching people to change brain wave patterns is a relatively easy task...and one that is only partially useful in a Dhammic sense in the absence of sila and Insight in the Vipassana sense.
No conditioning of brain functioning will in isolation produce an Arahant.

[Nibbida]

If some technology were developed that would facilitate meditation, it would be exclusive of sila. Sila is an essential part of the picture, so that's still something a person would have to practice in everyday life. Let's also not forget that ethical/moral actions also depend on healthy brain function (although not necessarily just on that...) Psychopaths show brain dysfunction and certain kinds of brain injuries and illnesses can cause psychopathic-like behavior. Again, it wouldn't be something that does the job for someone, but maybe would help them zero in on what they need to do. Even if a device could help facilitate concentration and nothing more, that concentration would help a person be more aware of the consequences of their unskillful actions, i.e. more mental and emotional agitation. That would indirectly help a person exercise sila because they would see more clearly how skillful actions produce better results.

No conditioning of brain functioning will in isolation produce an Arahant.

I absolutely agree. It wouldn't even produce a stream-enterer, in my estimation. The classical teachings of the Buddha would still be essential, irreplaceable. Again, just working out in a gym will not make you a tennis pro. You need coaching from an expert, you need to exercise certain techniques like swinging a racket properly. In the same way we will still need monastics and lay teachers to teach the path and instruct us in meditation practices. A tennis pro needs to eat nutritious food and avoid junk food, just as Dhamma practictioners will need sila, to engage in skillful choices and avoid unskillful ones. None of that would change. There's just no way around it.

I doubt that current neurofeedback protocols would be what's needed. They're good for certain things, but probably too crude and simple for something like this. Just increasing alpha or theta, for example, does not produce samadhi. What's still needed is a much better understanding of how the brain works, how wisdom/ethics/meditation changes it, and how that might be facilitated. We're nowhere near that now. We may never be, but it's something worth looking into. Of all the projects psychologists and neuroscientists to be working on, that seems like a worthy undertaking.

There are newer forms of neurofeedback that work very differently. Zengar Neuroptimal regards the brain as a non-linear, self-organizing system. Rather than trying to push the brain in a certain way (i.e. increase alpha), it gives the brain feedback on what it's doing and allows it to fine tune itself. One result is improved concentration and equanimity, better self-regulation. Christopher deCharms is using real-time fMRI to allow people to change activity in particular brain regions. Maybe the technology that could facilitate meditation has not yet been invented.

This is an interesting talk by Debi Dusold, who talks about her own experience with neurofeedback (particularly Zengar Neuroptimal) in helping her recover from anxiety, depression, and a mild traumatic brain injury. She improved to the point where she could subsequently do jhana and insight practice:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hOjd3VoIIPA

[PeterB]

Its certainly an interesting area Nibbida and we are already seeing fruit in terms of showing actual tangible and measurable results in terms of reducing compulsive thought patterns and restoring a degree of functionality to those afflicted by such thought patterns..which is not be sneezed at. In terms of where it might lead I am going to err on the side of caution. I think it will have its place in the psychotherapy of the future and possibly in meditative practises too and is certainly light years away from the earlier speculative schemata of Freud or Jung....but we shall see.

[Moog]

Wow, great stuff Nibbida. Thank you very much!

[Nibbida]

It all makes for a good story. Now let's see if it actually leads somewhere.

But the collaborative efforts between scientists and Buddhists is encouraging, even if just to explore rather than mutually ignore each other.